The James Harden trade was one of the biggest shockers of this year’s NBA trade deadline. He was nowhere to be found in trade chatter prior to the deadline.
Still, the 11-time NBA All-Star was shipped to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Darius Garland and a second-round pick.
ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne Reveals Why Los Angeles Clippers Traded James Harden
But the question remained: Why trade Harden when the 17-year NBA veteran is still notching 25.4 points per night — higher than his career scoring average of 24.0 points per game he entered the season with?
Now, ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne has uncovered surprising details on why Harden was traded, and it had nothing to do with his on-court performance.
Harden joined the Clippers back in 2023 after a blockbuster trade that involved seven players and draft picks. Since Harden’s arrival, the Clippers have made the playoffs in two consecutive seasons.
This season, Harden was a key contributor to the Clippers’ midseason 15–3 revival, which pushed them back into the playoff picture. However, the 36-year-old point guard will now don a Cavaliers jersey.
In her Feb. 6 report, Shelburne highlighted the primary reason behind Harden’s exit from the Clippers. According to Shelburne, the Clippers’ front office began discussing a potential trade as far back as summer 2025.
Surprisingly, it wasn’t Harden’s production, but rather his contract situation and age, that prompted the Clippers to part ways with the 2018 MVP.
“The beginning of the end of Harden’s tenure with the Clippers dates back to the summer, when the team told Harden it didn’t feel comfortable guaranteeing him more than the $39.2 million he was getting this season because of his age (36) and the team’s preference to maintain financial flexibility starting this summer,” Shelburne wrote in her report.
Harden signed a two-year, $81.5 million contract with the Clippers that runs through the 2026-27 season. He was slated to earn a $39.2 million base salary in 2026. Reportedly, Harden sought a fully guaranteed two-year, $80 million deal after the season.
Shelburne also noted that Harden wanted to remain in Los Angeles and believed in the Clippers’ title chances. As a result, he accepted a deal in which $13.3 million of the $42.3 million owed in the second year would be guaranteed.
From the Clippers’ perspective, the team ultimately swapped a 36-year-old Harden on an expiring contract for 26-year-old Garland, who offers greater long-term upside and has $87 million remaining on his deal, which runs through the 2027-28 season.
Ultimately, Harden’s exit from Los Angeles appears to be less about basketball and more about long-term planning. It will be interesting to see how Harden perform with the Cavaliers, who are fourth in the East with 31-21 record as of Feb. 6 and steadily marching toward the playoffs.
